Pakistan: Imran Khan’s deputy Shah Mahmood, Asad Umer arrested

Police arrested Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi, and Asad Umer on Wednesday in high profile raids followed by the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi has been taken into custody for 15 days under Section III of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance, 1960.

Asad Umar, a close confidant of Khan, was arrested by the anti-terrorist squad (ATS) from the premises of the IHC — the same court from where the PTI Chairman was taken into custody.

The Islamabad police’s ATS officials picked up Umar from outside the IHC Bar Room where he and other PTI leaders were preparing a plea for the IHC seeking a meeting with Khan.

Both Qureshi and Umar have been shifted to the Secretariat Police Station in the federal capital, with police trying to arrest PTI Senior Vice President Fawad Chaudhry as well.

The PTI’s top-tier leadership is being put behind bars to ensure law and order situation as they are the ones calling the shots — may it be protests or other disruptions being caused in the country.

Police have been arresting the protesting PTI workers in remote and major cities alike as they are agitated due to Imran Khan’s arrest, with Balochistan, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Islamabad summoning the armed forces to ensure law and order.

According to eyewitnesses, the PTI lawyers fought with the police to prevent Umar’s arrest, but the law enforcers overpowered them and took the PTI leader away.

The former finance minister was booked in two cases registered against him and other PTI leaders following the protests that ensued after Imran Khan’s arrest.

The cases were registered in Islamabad’s Tarnol and Aabpara police stations.

Umar’s arrest prompted PTI leader Shireen Mazari to take to Twitter, where she registered her protest against his fellow’s arrest.

“IHC premises ‘fertile ground’ for PTI leaders’ arrest,” Mazari tweeted.

She condemned Umar’s arrest, saying “seems like the IHC area has become a fertile ground to illegally arrest PTI leaders”.